Dave Krieger

Krieger: Time for Rockies to replace Ty Wigginton at third base

It's not often a grand slam counts as four unearned runs, but when it does, it's usually a killer. It was for the Rockies on Sunday.

Time to face facts: The Ty Wigginton experiment at third base isn't working. It needs to be over.

Sixty-five games into the season, it's still early, but not that early. Assuming they can't swing a trade by 6:40 tonight, the Rocks have two choices: They can install rookie Chris Nelson at third or they can recall Ian Stewart from Colorado Springs, where he's batting .326 with 10 home runs and 27 RBIs.

For the second day in a row, a Wigginton error on a routine play opened the door to a big Dodgers inning. For the second day in a row, the Rocks scored more than enough runs to win and still lost.

When it was over, what might have been a series sweep had degenerated into a split and the Rockies were once again three games below .500.

Third base has become a black hole. Stewart, a generally excellent defender, didn't hit enough to stick around. Jose Lopez, acquired from Seattle last winter, didn't hit much and didn't field that well, either, before being released. Wigginton, another American League import, has not hit nearly enough to make up for his subpar defense.

When I asked manager Jim Tracy after Sunday's game if he was thinking about making another change at third, he was uncharacteristically curt.

"I'm not going to talk about that at this time," he said.

Advertisement

But he left little doubt how important he considered Wigginton's latest error, which came on a room-service double-play ball with a man on first and nobody out in the top of the third, the Rocks leading the Dodgers 3-0.

"You have to catch the ball," he said. "And in catching the ball you don't allow additional hitters to come to the plate that otherwise wouldn't be walking up there."

Instead of two out, nobody on and Aaron Miles coming to the plate — or, at a minimum, one on and one out — Wigginton's error left two on and nobody out.

Ubaldo Jimenez retired the next two hitters — Miles on a fielder's choice and Andre Ethier looking at strike three. The inning should have been over. Instead, he found himself facing Matt Kemp, the Dodgers' most dangerous hitter. He pitched around him, loading the bases for James Loney. Loney hit a splitter into the lower right-field pavilion for a grand slam.

Jimenez gave up three more singles, resulting in another unearned run, before finally retiring the pitcher, the 10th batter of the inning.

Saturday night, Wigginton's error came on Kemp's groundball leading off the seventh. By the time that inning was over, a 4-1 Dodgers lead had ballooned to 7-1. The Rocks came back with five in the eighth, but instead of taking the lead, it merely pulled them within one.

"We have to clean up some of the things that have taken place in the last couple of days defensively," Tracy said.

For a team that has prided itself on defense since 2007, Wigginton's struggles at third are not tolerable, particularly considering his relatively modest offensive contributions of six HRs and 20 RBIs.

His partner on the left side of the infield, Troy Tulowitzki, tried to stand up for his teammate.

"Wiggy's been doing a good job," he said. "I think he just took his eye off the ball. Those things happen and you just keep working. All you can do is go out there, take more groundballs and put in the time."

No one questions Wigginton's effort, but he's a classic jack of all trades, master of none. He's a subpar defender pretty much everywhere you put him. If you count Friday night, when he couldn't come up with a throw in the dirt playing first, his defensive difficulties contributed to big Dodgers innings in three consecutive games.

Wigginton wasn't in the clubhouse by the time reporters were admitted after Sunday's game.

Nelson told me he's comfortable at all three infield positions and would have no problem taking over at third if asked. Frankly, with Jonathan Herrera struggling offensively, that's not the move I'd make.

I'd recall Stewart, install him at third on an everyday basis, and give him a month to get his offense together. He's certainly hit well enough at Triple-A. That way, Nelson can play second and the Rocks can try to keep their offensive momentum going.

But whether it's Nelson or Stewart, it has to be someone other than Wigginton. Nothing personal. Wigginton is a gamer. But the Rocks need a third baseman who can catch the ball.